Therapeutic nanoparticles penetrate leaves and deliver nutrients to agricultural crops.

ABSTRACT: As the world population grows, there is a need for efficient agricultural technologies to provide global food requirements and reduce environmental toll. In medicine, nanoscale drug delivery systems grant improved therapeutic precision by overcoming biological barriers and enhancing drug targeting to diseased tissues. Here, we loaded nanoscale drug-delivery systems with agricultural nutrients, and applied them to the leaves of tomato plants. We show that the nanoparticles - liposomes composed of plant-derived lipids, penetrate the leaf and translocate in a bidirectional manner, distributing to other leaves and to the roots. The liposomes were then internalized by the plant cells, where they released their active ingredient. Up to 33% of the applied nanoparticles penetrated the leaf, compar

SUBMITTER: Karny A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5958142 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature